Is your headline too long?

Don’t let your head get cut off

One quick way to write better headlines: Benchmark your headline length against your favorite media channels.

The New York Times headlines, for instance, average 8.6 words. News release headlines average 11.2 words — 37% longer than the news publication of record in the United States.

Here, for instance, is a sample release headline:

LIFE TIME FITNESS SHAREHOLDER ALERT: Faruqi & Faruqi, LLP Announces the Investigation of Life Time Fitness, Inc. Over the Proposed Sale of the Company to Leonard Green & Partners and TPG Capital —LTM

Friends! At 33 words, that’s a long lead, not a headline!

And here’s today’s lead headline in the Times:

18 States Sue to Stop Trump’s Birthright Citizenship Order

If the Times can summarize the most important news of the day in nine short words, you can too.

How do your headlines stack up?

Does your team need help writing better headlines? If so, reach out. I’ll help you and your team members write messages that Catch Your Readers.